Paint Yourself White
by LEYTON-NALEY
Summary: "Tonight, you will consummate your marriage to Jackson," he told her, and she shook her head in an attempt to remove the image of that from her mind. "I want you to think back on this day and know that on the night of your wedding, I had you first."


**A/N: So, Hayley and Elijah have been one of my OTPs since the first episode of The Originals. I've always wanted to write about them, and after 2x14 I was inspired to do just that. Here is my attempt at writing how I wish 2x14 had gone. Please drop a review to let me know your thoughts and opinions on it. Thank you!**

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Hayley kneeled in front of her daughter, feelings of love washing over her. Being reunited with her child had been the best wedding gift of all. After this day, she would never have to experience the torture of being separated from her baby again. Hope giggled at her, and a smile beamed bright across her features. There was movement by the door, and a dark figure caught her attention.

There stood Elijah, his tall frame hovering in the doorway. Their eyes locked, and she saw the love that he held for her deep in his. She had to swallow heavily to keep her reflection of those exact feelings from showing. Getting to her knees, she stood up to face him. His eyes continued to scan her over, almost as if he were searing the image of her into his mind.

"You look perfect," he said, sincerity dripping from each word.

She lifted her shoulders, not knowing how to respond. His affect on her had been immediate, as it always had been. But this, this was different. His words seeped into her skin, and guilt hit her hard as she was once again reminded of her feelings for him. He shifted, contemplating his next words.

"Hayley, I understand this arrangement is important to your cause, and I would do nothing to dissuade you from it. I would be surmise if I didn't tell you at least once-"

"Don't," she interrupted, shaking her head. "Don't say it."

His eyes searched hers, asking for answers. She didn't know what to say. If there were one person who could stop her from marrying Jackson today, it was Elijah. The power he held over her was intimidating, and she needed to get away from it.

A knock on the door stopped her from further explanation, and she looked over Elijah's shoulder to see Rebekah standing where Elijah had just been. Her smile was polite, but Hayley knew she had heard every word of their conversation.

"Please excuse me for interrupting, but I was wondering if I could borrow Hope. I haven't had much time with her today," she said, shooting an encouraging look towards Elijah.

"Of course," Hayley agreed, watching her pick up Hope and begin to walk away.

Once she was gone, Hayley could feel Elijah's eyes waiting intently for her to speak. He wanted an explanation. She couldn't give one to him though; not without breaking down in the process. He took a step towards her, eyes pleading.

"Hayley-" he tried, pausing when she raised a hand.

"Don't," she begged, watching him bow his head in sorrow.

She couldn't handle this. This man was one of the strongest she had ever known. Nothing could break through that tough exterior. After everything they had been through together, she had seen enough to know that much.

But here, right now, he was not the man she had come to know. He was crumbling, shattering to pieces right in front of her; because of her. She wanted him to hold her. She wanted him to whisper in her ear that he was happy for her. She wanted his full support on this because she needed the comfort of knowing he was there to back her up every step of the way.

A single tear slid down his face, and she could practically see the guilt eating up at him. Her heart squeezed in agony, the image of a broken Elijah unbearable. Without control, her arm stretched outward. Her fingertips danced across his stubble, and the action brought her back to the night they had first been together; the night they had first become one.

His eyes flickered up to hers, and she saw the same recognition in them. A darkness overtook his pupils, and she withdrew her hand slightly. He caught it in his own, bringing it back to rest along his jaw. She could feel the hard bone and knew he was clenching it in an effort to restrain himself. If it had been anyone else in this room with her, she would have been scared. But no, it was Elijah. She trusted this man with her own life; with the life of her daughter.

"I know you have to marry him," he murmured, his words strained. "You will do this, Hayley."

"Then what do you want from me?" she asked, her voice sounding so small and unlike herself.

His forehead leaned towards her until it was resting against hers. She heard him suck in a shaky breath, her eyes closing to prevent any tears from escaping. Both of his hands slid up her arms, stopping to cup her cheeks. She was frozen in place. Her body refused to move, and she had to remind herself to breathe.

"Tonight, you will consummate your marriage to Jackson," he told her, and she shook her head in an attempt to remove the image of that from her mind. "I want you to think back on this day and know that on the night of your wedding, I had you first."

Her heart lifted into her throat and her other hand took a fist full of his shirt. There was such intensity, such promise in those words. She couldn't bring herself to open her eyes, though she could feel his burning holes into her.

She shivered when she felt his lips ghost across her cheek. Her eyelids shut tighter, refusing to open because she knew full well that the moment they opened, she would be his. There would be no backing away or telling him to stop. She would allow herself to fall, sailing downwards with the comforting knowledge that he would catch her.

His lips only continued to skim over her face, purposefully avoiding her lips. Her breathing was growing more labored by the second, thoughts of Elijah, and only Elijah, filling her brain. He kissed along her jaw, sucking lightly as he maneuvered his way from one side to the other. He sucked on the spot just underneath her ear, and a small moan flew out from inside of her. The hand that was holding his shirt only tightened its grip, not sure if her body had wanted to bring him closer or push him away.

He kissed the corners of her mouth, just barely placing his lips against hers. The feeling made her head static, and she could feel her self control blowing away. His hands tilted her face upwards, angling his lips so that they covered hers more purposefully. The feeling was still so new to her, yet so familiar at the same time. This felt natural to be standing alone with Elijah, kissing him right above the place where she would later be getting married to another man.

His hands buried themselves into her hair, and her body sunk into his. She opened her mouth to him, accepting his eager tongue. There was a tenderness in the way he stroked his against hers. The feeling made her knees weak, and she was sure that if he hadn't been supporting her head she would've collapsed onto the floor in a dazed heap.

Gently, he removed the small crown she had been wearing, weaving it free from the tangles of her hair. He pulled away to set it on the nightstand, eyes gazing over her in the process. They were filled to the brim with lust, compassion, pain, and most importantly love. All morals her feeble hands had been holding onto were discarded, and all she was aware of was the overwhelming need to be one with this man again.

Launching herself at him, her arms wrapped around his neck. His hands gripped her waist, preventing her feet from touching the ground. Out of fear of ripping the only dress she had, she refrained from wrapping her legs around his waist. Though she could remember clearly how delicious it had felt to have him pressing into her, and just the memory caused a pool of want to settle low in her stomach.

If she were thinking clearly- which she wasn't- she would remind him to lock the doors. She would have him shut the window so that no one could catch a glimpse of their actions. Hell, she would have told him to stop. But at the moment, thinking clearly hadn't been an option for her.

Elijah set her back on the ground, one hand pressing her lower half into his as he arched his body into hers. She moaned, taking his bottom lip between her teeth and tugging on it. He grunted at the action, the noise enough to drive her wild. Multitasking had always been one of her strong suits, and so she did just that. She continued her assault on Elijah with her lips, hands undoing each and every button on his shirt.

Unlike last time, she was careful with how she undressed him. He did live here, and she was positive he had about a million other shirts he could of changed into had anything happened to this one, but she thought better of just ripping it off. He was being gentle with her, and she felt it only right to do the same with him. When every button had been rolled free, she was pushing the fabric off his shoulders and onto the ground.

He watched her, eyes hungry. His fangs were barred just enough for her to notice, and she encouraged him to run them along the base of her neck. The sharpness nagged her skin, a small trickle of blood flowing out into the open. His tongue flicked forward, sucking the spot dry. She melted in his arms, cowering into his neck and placing a bite there as well. It didn't break the skin, but the low growl he let out made her think otherwise.

Flipping her around, he undid the traitorous zipper that was preventing his skin from meeting hers. She sighed at the feel of his fingertips grazing her backside. He seemed to be branding her with just his touch. Every spot he touched left a fiery heat that she could feel well inside her core. His lips scampered across her shoulder blades, and she could feel him inhale deeply the scent of her hair that had flowed thick and heavy around the length of her backside.

"How are you so perfect, Hayley Marshall?" he murmured into her skin, his words like a tattoo she would never regret getting.

"Elijah."

The word sounded strangled, desperate. She hated being the needy girl. She had always been someone who needed no one besides herself. Then Elijah came along, and she had needed him in every way possible. What she didn't expect was for him to need her just as much.

He sensed her eagerness and finished removing the dress from her body. She stepped out of it, and he drifted off to hang it up. Her throat tightened at the burst of love that simple action had caused. Once he was back at her side, she noted the small curve of his lips. He was happy. He was happy just as she was because in this room, in this moment, it was only them.

Reaching forward, he separated the sheets, nodding at her to get under. Crawling in, she stretched out before him, open and trusting herself with him completely. She could tell by the look on his face that not only was that feeling reciprocated, but it was also appreciated. Stepping out of his shoes, his hands moved to undo his belt.

She sat up, stopping his hands to replace them with her own. He scooted closer, gritting his teeth every time the curves of her fingers brushed over him. The clanking noise of his belt being undone made her insides tighten with want. He pushed his pants down the rest of the way, climbing into bed with her. His body hovered over hers, lips finding hers to lead her into a kiss that had her cupping his face, attempting to drink him in.

Arching her body into his, she unclasped her bra from behind her back. Elijah watched as she discarded it onto the floor right alongside his pants, his eyes darkening that much more. He nuzzled his head between her breasts, her nails scratching lightly over his scalp. His lips pressed into the space below her collarbone, sucking just enough to avoid leaving proof of what they were doing.

"He'll notice," she gasped, feeling him suck down just a little harder.

He let out a growl of frustration, but backed off. There were sounds of cheering from outside, and just for a second, they were snapped back into reality. His fingers cupped her face, drawing her eyes away from the window and over to his.

It was obvious that he wanted more time. He was not done with her just yet, and perhaps he never would be. However, he would have to settle for what he was given right now. He took care of their remaining pieces of clothing, a small pile of unwanted fabrics gathering in the space by her nightstand.

His hand wrapped around his length, guiding himself to her. He pushed in slightly, a million different emotions rushing back to her. Her nails dug into his back, silently begging him to continue. They held their breath until he was fully inside of her. Their eyes locked, and he intertwined her fingers with his above her head. His other hand rested on her hip, keeping him poised at the angle he was coming towards her at.

It didn't take many strokes before she was contributing to their act. Wordlessly, they set a pace to go at. It was just the right amount of slow, as well as fast. Each thrust he made was laced with the love he held for her. Her head was spinning, her mind not able to handle it all at the moment. All she could focus on was his body slamming so perfectly into hers.

It was as if they were puzzle pieces; they fit together so perfectly. Sex had never been this way for her. The first time she had slept with Elijah, she had felt the significance it held over all of the other men she had been with before. What they were doing now was just a reminder of that.

When she came, he was right there with her. Her name had spilled from his lips, making her shiver despite her overly-heated body. She had cried his name, loud and uncaring if anyone were to overhear. A small part of her wanted someone to. She would never admit it though.

Afterwards, he stepped out of the bed, beginning to redress. There was a battle going on inside of her, her brain and her heart in the midst of a deadly war. In the end, she knew her brain would win; it always did. She guessed that was why she didn't stop him.

As he adjusted the collar of his shirt, his eyes met hers. Everything that he wanted her to know was said with that one look. She nodded in understanding, smiling painfully. She bit her lip attempting to keep her sob from escaping, and he was immediately at her side. As he kneeled in front of her, his hand went to cradle her face.

"I don't know if I can do it, Elijah," she admitted, a sudden weight being lifted from her shoulders.

"You're the strongest person I know," he managed, smiling at her with so much love in his eyes. "Just think about Hope. You're doing all of this for her."

She nodded feebly, leaning into his touch. His face inched closer to hers, her eyes closing in wait of his kiss. The presence of his hand left her face, and when she opened her eyes, he was gone. It took her awhile, but eventually she was dressed up again. She looked in the mirror, examining herself with such criticism. She wasn't mad because of what she had just done. She wasn't mad that another man had ravaged her on the night of her wedding. She wasn't even mad that she had enjoyed it so much.

No, she was mad because as she checked herself over in the mirror, she saw that there was no indication that he had been there.

No one would ever know.

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**A/N: I understand that Hayley needed to marry Jackson in order to protect Hope. That's why I ended this with her still going through with it. I just thought that Elijah fully expressing his feelings to Hayley like this should have happened. Thanks for reading! Please leave a review :)**


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